Four athletes from OnslowCounty brought home the gold after competing in a global Special Olympics aquatics competition.

Joshua Gomez, 13, Cortney Quinn 35, Donovan Mouton, 21 and Jessica Martinez, 25 earned first place in the 4 x 25 relay freestyle race during the 2012 Special Olympics World Aquatics Invitational in San Juan, Puerto Rico last month. The swimmers were among 300 athletes from 29 countries.

Coaches Laura Quinn and Nick McCullen said the relay was one of the most exciting events of the games, as North Carolina competed against Russia and two teams from Puerto Rico. Russia placed second and the two teams from Puerto Rico took home third and fourth place.

“It was a lot of hard in the process with all of the practices but when it was time to compete they did well,” McCullen said.

Other medals included a gold and bronze for Joshua for the 100 and 50 meter freestyle races, two gold and a bronze medal for Quinn in the 200, 100, and 400 meter freestyle, a bronze and fourth place ribbon for Martinez in the 50 meter and 100 meter freestyle and silver medal and participant ribbon for the 100 meter butterfly and 100 meter individual medley races for Mouton.

“They did best ever there,’ Joshua’s mother Diana Gomez said. “They were really in the zone for the race and ready to compete.”

The OnslowCounty team was given a rare opportunity to compete in first global aquatics invitational in June after responding to a newsletter sent from the Special Olympics seeking competitors from North Carolina. Despite the language and cultural barriers, the event gave them the experience to meet and compete against athletes from other countries.

“It was really fun,” Jessica said. “I think I did get a little nervous in the beginning.”

The athletes were given Olympic style treatment with four star hotel rooms, fine dining, hot tubs, dancing and tour of San Juan and its beaches.

“I had a great time, I enjoyed the beach and I got to see a puffer fish for the very first time,” Joshua said. “I liked the competition and getting the medals, drinking Coca Cola and I really liked the hotel.”

The families of the athletes were also in the stands to cheer them on and witness the hard work and effort that each displayed during the competition. Donovan’s mother Robin Mouton said that Special Olympics games are always filled with support and opportunities for each athlete to shine, no matter what country.

"It was really exciting to watch and there were so many different countries there," said. “There was a lot of team spirit among all of the families of the teams. The teams from other countries cheered our team on and we cheered back for them.”